Electrical power utilities own or control rights of way for the transmission of bulk electrical energy over long distances. Typically, the utilities erect support towers or pylons for stringing 3-phase electrical conductors. These utilities have large investments in such rights of way and seek to optimize the return on these investments.
Utilities have in the past also erected communications cables in their rights of way for the purpose of maintaining communications between generating plants and other utility facilities. In the late 1970's and early 1980's, the utilities sought to utilize the high communication bandwidth of optical fiber communications technologies, which were just then becoming available.
Also in the 1980's, private long distance telephone carriers entered the market for long distance telephone communications, especially in the United States after the divestiture of AT&T, which separated the long distance carriers from the regional telephone operating companies. Electrical utilities have recently sought to take advantage of their rights of way by installing excess capacity in their communications cables and selling such capacity to regional telephone operating companies and private long distance telephone carriers as an additional source of revenue. Since optical fiber communications offer such significant bandwidths (e.g., a single optical fiber can carry over 10,000 simultaneous telephone conversations), utilities have sought efficient and effective means for installing fiber optic communication channels in their rights of way.
Any communication means provided in electrical utility rights of way must operate in the environment of strong electric and magnetic fields which emanate from the power transmission conductors. It is therefore problematic to use coaxial or other cables that include metal or other electrical conductors, because of noise and the inducement of electric currents. It is believed that optical fiber communications cables are preferable to any type of electrical communications cables because of higher communications capacity and immunity to interference.
Optical fibers for communications cables are usually provided in one of two configurations. In the first configuration, the optical fibers are contained within an electrically conductive cable installed as a ground wire, also called optical fiber overhead groundwire ("OPGW"). Examples of this approach are found in U.S. Pat. Nos. Re. 32,374 to Dey et al. and 4,944,570 to Oglesby et al. The ground wire is placed above the phase conductors in order to protect the system from electrical faults and from high current surges induced by a direct or near-by lightning strikes. Since OPGW cables are by definition electrical conductors, there is no concern about induced electrical currents in the conductors and the optical fibers are nonconductive and therefore immune to interference.
In a second configuration, the optical fibers are provided in a separate, self-supporting cable. This type of fiber optic cable does not take the place of a ground wire. Instead, the fiber optic cable is installed in self-supporting manner in addition to, and generally below, the phase and ground conductors and provides another way to add optical fiber communications capability to the rights-of-way of existing overhead electrical transmission and distribution systems. Typically, this self-supporting type of fiber optic cable would be placed below the ground wire in the vicinity of the phase conductors. Accordingly, it is important that such fiber optic cables be impervious or highly resistant to the induction of electrical currents because of the strong electrical fields from the power conductors.
Preferably, such non-OPGW cables are constructed of all-dielectric (i.e., non-conductive) materials in order to avoid problems associated with the strong electric fields. Using a nonconductive material also avoids problems such as excess heat resulting from current flowing through the cable, and the need to provide means for insulating or dissipating the unwanted induced current in order to prevent electrical shock to utility personnel and damage to equipment.
Various types of all dielectric or non-conducting self-supporting fiber optic cables are known in the art. Since optical fibers are fragile and prone to fail when subjected to too much tension, these cables typically utilize strength members comprising a non-conducting filament (such as DuPont's Kevlar.RTM. brand aramid fiber) or glass reinforced plastic to provide longitudinal strength for the cable. Prior to the present invention, the aramid or other plastic strength member has been stranded together or formed into a mesh and sealed within a plastic coating, cladding, or jacket. Examples of various approaches are demonstrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,342,500, 4,776,665, 4,822,133, 4,838,635, 4,374,608, 4,892,382, and 5,016,973.
It is known that the cladding or jacket of such all-dielectric or non-conducting cables can be damaged or destroyed by various means. Abrasion may result from animals or during installation, and punctures can occur from projectiles (e.g., shotgun pellets) or other objects that come in contact with the jacket of the cable. In addition, the jacket of such cables can be damaged or destroyed by partial electrical discharge events that result from electrical currents induced on the cable jacket especially when wet, particularly in high-tension networks where the transmitted voltage exceeds 138 kV. These partial discharge events are known by those skilled in the art as "dry-band arcing" and are caused by moisture and other contaminants on the outer surface of the cable cladding. As a wet cable dries, it does not do so uniformly, and small dry areas may be formed about the circumference of the cable at various places. The electrical currents, also called "tracking currents", that are induced in the remaining wet portions of the cable surface may be great enough to support an arc across these dry bands. When this dry-band arcing occurs, heat and oxidation are generated that damage, and may eventually destroy, the cable jacket.
Eventually, the dry-band arcing or abrasion may result in the outer jacket of the cable being penetrated so that the interior portions of the cable are exposed to moisture and other contaminants. Once the integrity of the cable jacket is compromised and the woven or nonwoven filament type strength members are exposed to moisture, migration of the water throughout the cable is facilitated by the "wicking" action of the filaments themselves.
Once wicking has occurred, the cables are prone to sudden, catastrophic failure. Such failure generally results in one of two ways. In a first scenario, the volume of water entering the cable may eventually become so great that the cable collapses under its own weight. In a second scenario, the cable actually explodes as a result of the induced electrical current through the cable, which is now conductive because of water or moisture.
Penetration of the outer jacket is also undesirable because it may result in the strength members being exposed to ultraviolet light. It is known that prolonged exposure of Kevlar fibers to ultraviolet light results in the degradation of the strength properties of the Kevlar. Such degradation results in the weakening and potential failure of the cable.
Various cable designs have been developed to address the problems of dry band arcing and jacket penetration. Different types of jacketing constructions have been attempted in order to reduce the likelihood that the jacket will be penetrated as a result of abrasion. Examples of this approach may be found in the U.S. Patents cited above.
Other cable designs vary the composition of the cable in an effort to avoid damage resulting from dry-band arcing. Such changes include reducing the carbon content of the cable's outer jacket, and including additives that reduce the damage otherwise caused by the arching. A wide variety of materials will survive in the electric fields associated with power lines operating at or below 150 kV. Transmission systems operating in the range between 150 kV and 275 kV have been found to require special materials. At voltages above 275 kV, difficulties have been experienced developing a non-metal composition that will survive in the strong electric fields long enough to meet the needs of the electric power industry. An example of one attempt to control the dry-band arcing problem is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,665 to Oestreich, where the cable itself is made slightly conductive in order to reduce the occurrence of dry-band arcing.
Other problems have been encountered in producing all dielectric self-supporting fiber optic cables. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that extruded jackets made of polyethylene or similar materials exhibit a tendency to shrink as they cure. When a cable's strength members include isolating jackets extruded about a bundle of flexible, non-conducting filaments or fibers, the shrinkage of the jacket along its longitudinal axis causes the filaments themselves to be compressed, likely due to friction between the extruded jacket and the filaments. As a result of the compression of the load bearing filaments, tension exerted upon the cable during installation will cause it to stretch until the filaments return to their original length and load is imparted to the filaments.
When a cable is first suspended between the towers employed in a power distribution system, the weight of the cable itself causes tension to be exerted upon the cable. Since the polyethylene jacket and other elements of the cable are unable to bear this initial load, the cable stretches until the compressed load bearing filaments return to their original length and tension is transmitted to the bundles of filaments. Two problems result from this initial elongation of the cable. The elongation leads to sagging of the cable and results in a reduction of the clearance between the ground and the cable. More importantly, however, the elongation causes tension to be transmitted to the optical fibers that are included in the cable's core. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that such tension eventually results in the attenuation of the amount of light passing through the optical fiber, or breakage of the optical fiber. In either case, the cable is no longer capable of effectively performing the task it was installed to do.
Despite prior art attempts to solve the problems associated with all-dielectric self supporting cables, prior self-supporting fiber optic cables are still susceptible to failure. Therefore, there is still a significant need for a non-conducting self-supporting fiber optic cable for use in conjunction with existing groundwires that demonstrates an improvement in prior art designs.